Pivot - 5

PIvot - 5

Matthew 15:21-28

Introduction

A couple years ago Jodie and I had the opportunity to travel to England for the first time. We spent a few days with some missionary friends (Josh and Lashi Howard from India) and then we spent two days in London to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. We loved every second of it. Our favorite part was the visit to Windsor Castle. It was magnificent [pic - Windsor Castle]. It was originally built in the 11th century after the Norman invasion of England by William the Conqueror. Being so old, parts of the castle that were constructed in the 16th century are still referred to as the “new part.”

The most fascinating part of Windsor Castle is not the building itself but the woman who occupies it. Queen Elizabeth II is a legend. She is Britain’s longest-reigning monarch and is the 4th longest-reigning monarch in history. As of today she has been reigning for 25,295 days (62 years, 92 days). In just 1,112 days (3 years, 17 days) she will surpass King Louis XIV of France to become the longest-reigning monarch in all of human history. The picture [pic - South Wing] on the screen is the South Wing of the Upper Ward of Windsor Castle…her private residence. And on the day we visited, the Queen was in residence there.

Do you know what the Queen had to do to earn her title? Do you know what she had to prove to be able to live in such an opulent castle? Absolutely nothing. She was born into the Windsor family as the oldest child of King George VI. She is Queen because she won the genetic lottery. She didn’t have to earn it. She didn’t have to submit her resume. It was her birthright.

In Genesis 12 God appears to a man named Abraham and promises to birth a new nation from his line. It will be God’s nation that he will protect and bless. They will be his people and he will be their God. And how did you get to be part of that nation? You were born into it. It was the Jewish birthright. And to first century Jews in the time of Jesus, the world was divided into only two groups: Jews and Gentiles (everyone else). The Jews were God’s covenant people and then all the other people in the world. That was it.

Jesus was born into this nation and was their Jewish Messiah. He was the fulfillment of the prophecies and promises from the Hebrew Scriptures. He spent virtually his entire ministry in and around different parts of Israel. He sparred with the Jewish religious leaders. He came to restore Israel. So when Jesus operates outside of Israel or interacts with Gentiles, it is controversial for everyone involved, and important that we sit up and take notice. Our text for today is just such an account:

Matthew 15:21-28 - 21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

Before we jump into this great account, let me set up some background. Though Jesus is the Jewish Messiah come to restore Israel, it is the Jews who will reject him. And ironically, it is Gentiles who respond favorably to him. And that is the surrounding context of what is happening here with this woman. Jesus has just been in a conversation with the Jewish religious leaders about their religious traditions, which the Jews have elevated over God’s own Word. They were concerned because Jesus and his disciples did not adhere to their traditions regarding ceremonial washing. Specifically how they wash their hands before they eat. A primary concern of the Jews was this clean/unclean issue. They thought that eating with unwashed hands would make you unclean and rejected by God. Here is how Jesus ended that interaction:

Matthew 15:7-9 - 7 You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

8 “‘This people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

9 in vain do they worship me,

teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

So those who should be accepting and welcoming of Jesus reject him. Those who should be close to him have hearts that are far from him. So there is this ironic twist from both sides:

- those who should have accepted Jesus rejected him.

- those who should be accepted by God (Jews) are rejected by him.

Jesus then continues to teach the crowd about what it is that actually makes someone unclean. It isn’t the outside issues (hand washing, what you eat, etc). It is what is on the inside that makes you unclean.

Matthew 15:10-20 - 10 And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? 18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

So again here is this ironic twist for the Jews…those who think they are clean because of what they do externally are actually unclean because of the sin in their heart. And those they claim to be unclean (Gentiles) actually may be clean because of what is in their hearts. And with those words on his lips, Jesus now gives us a living example of this truth:

Verse 21, Jesus ‘withdraws,’ a word typically used in reference to withdrawing for the purpose of personal safety. So Jesus is not welcome or safe in Israel, so he withdraws…to Tyre and Sidon. Jesus has been in Gennesaret and walks to Tyre (about 30 miles north) and then to Sidon (25 more miles north). This journey to and around the area takes weeks or months. Meaning this…he did not go there by accident. This was intentional. And why does that matter? Tyre and Sidon are outside of Israel. This is the only instance in Jesus’ entire ministry where he leaves Jewish lands for Gentile ones.

While there a Canaanite woman approaches him. This is the only time in the entire NT that the designation of ‘Canaanite’ is used. Not only is she a Gentile, her heritage stems from one of Israel’s ancient arch nemesis. The Canaanites are the ones who occupied the Promised Land that Joshua and Israel had to battle. They were evil. They were brutal in their warfare and in their worship. Their pagan gods demanded child sacrifice. Not only is she outside of God’s covenant people, she comes from his declared enemies on the Earth.

But this woman has an issue. Her daughter is demon-possessed. That never happened randomly. She didn’t trip and fall and come home with a demon. Someone close to her, or the daughter herself, has opened themselves up to pagan idolatry and Satanic influence. So at first glance, everything is going against her. That is…until she addresses Jesus.

v. 22 - “Have mercy one me, O Lord, Son of David.” Well, that’s unexpected coming from someone like her. She calls him ‘Lord.’ In fact, she will do so 3x in her interaction with him. People call Jesus ‘Lord’ about 20x in Matthew, almost all of them are done in faith. Meaning they are declaring Jesus to be Lord of all creation, the God of the universe. Then she calls him by a title, “Son of David.” That title is used in Matthew 1:1 to introduce Jesus’ genealogy as the “Son of David.” It is used again in Matthew 12:23 by people who have just seen his power. They ask, “Could this be the Son of David?” This is quite a title, one that has Messianic overtones. King David was the chief King over Israel in the OT. God had promised that one of David’s descendants would rule over God’s people for all eternity. Is this that ruler?

So this pagan, Gentile woman, with a heritage of evil paganism, who has loose ties to satanic activity that brought demon-possession…knows who Jesus is and addresses him as such. You are God in the flesh, the eternal ruler over all of God’s people, the promised Jewish Messiah. But just one problem…she isn’t Jewish! She’s an unclean outsider. She has no claim on the benefits of Israel’s Messiah. She is not part of God’s covenant people. So if Jesus is going to do anything for her, it will be completely by mercy. She hasn’t earned it. She doesn’t deserve it. Only by mercy, which is exactly what she has already declared…”Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David.”

What Jesus does next is a source of controversy for readers of the Bible and for scholars. Because what he does next is so odd. So unique. So unlike anything he’d ever done before with anyone he interacted with. He ignored her. v. 23 - But he did not answer her a word. Jesus had never, not one time, never ignored anyone who had cried out for his help. So again, we sit up and take notice. Jesus is up to something here.

The disciples get sick of her crying out to them and ask Jesus to send her away. Implied in their statement is that they were wanting Jesus to give her what she was asking for…not because their hearts broke for her, not because they were so compassionate, but because they just wanted her to go away. They’d never seen Jesus ignore anyone before. I’m sure they are just as confused as we are.

But notice Jesus’ response to them…end of v. 23 - I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Wait a minute! Didn’t Jesus come to save the world? For God so loved the world…and all that? Remember, Jesus is the Jewish Messiah sent to restore Israel. Jesus never went to Rome, Alexandria, or Athens. He came to Israel. And he only left it once…right here! She is not part of that group. She knows it. Jesus knows it. Jesus is creating this tension between he and this woman. She is an outsider and Jesus is pressing that point home.

She apparently doesn’t care. She keeps crying out. v. 25 - But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” She just won’t give up. Now she is blocking his way. She ‘knelt’ before him. This word for ‘knelt’ is a special one. You know it well. It is the Greek word proskuneo, used over 60x in the NT. But almost every single time it is used it is translated as ‘worship.’ Apparently she really does believe that Jesus is Lord, that he is the promised Son of David. She worships him and begs for his help.

Yet Jesus continues his odd interaction with her. Again, he is up to something here. He is pressing the point even further. v. 26 - And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” Well, that’s offensive. The Jews had a favorite racial slur against the Gentiles…dogs. Most of the dogs in that era were the mangy, nasty, street dogs who were gross and savage. That is what the Jews thought of the Gentiles. Is that what Jesus thinks of this woman? Does he use a racial slur here? Absolutely not. There are two Greek words for ‘dog.’ Jesus uses the other one, the one that refers to household pets. Ok, well that doesn’t seem much better, right?

What is Jesus doing? She is an outsider who deserves nothing from the Lord. She does not belong to God’s covenant people and therefore does not deserve any of the benefits from the Jewish Messiah. She knows that. Jesus knows that. And he continues to press that point home. Because he’s right…you don’t feet your pets before you feed your kids. There is an order of priority. But…where does the household pet live? In. The. House. This is a whisper of the Gospel to come. The undeserving, pagan, Satan-influenced outsider has been invited into the house.

She gets it! v. 27 - “Yes Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Jesus invites her in to dine at the table with God’s own children. She’s willing to take even the scraps. She will take anything she can get. Why? Because she is an outside who deserves nothing from him. If mercy gets her scraps, then scraps she will take! But she gets far more than mere scraps.

v. 28 - Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

She didn’t get scraps…she got the full chef’s tasting menu. She feasts on his mercy and her faith welcomes her as a child. “Great” is your faith. It is the Greek word ‘mega.’ You have mega faith. You have super faith. You know, this is the only time Jesus calls anyone’s faith ‘great’ and this is only the second time Jesus ever publicly praised someone for their faith. Do you know who the other one is? The Gentile Roman Centurion in Matthew 8.

So what is happening in the larger context?

Those who should welcome Jesus have rejected him. Those who should be accepted by Jesus have been rejected by him. Those who should be rejected by Jesus have been accepted by him. Those who think they are clean are actually unclean by their sin. Those who should be unclean are actually clean by faith.

The Gospel of Matthew is known as the Jewish Gospel. He includes more OT prophecies being fulfilled than the other Gospel writers. He includes more details about Jewish life, the Jewish feasts, and Jewish expectations. It is clearly written for a Jewish audience. Yet, the Gospel of Matthew is also the most Gentile.

opens with Jesus’ genealogy. Four women are famously listed in it…Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary. Three of them are Gentiles. Jesus heals the servant of a Gentile Roman centurion in Matthew 8. Another Gentile Roman centurion will declare Jesus to be the Son of God while standing at the foot of the cross. And Matthew will close his Gospel with the Great Commission, instructing his disciples to take the Gospel to all the nations of the world. And here is this Gentile, pagan, Canaanite woman…Jesus will model the Great Commission before he commands it. He personally goes into Gentile lands to bring hope to the hopeless, salvation to the lost, and an invitation to the undeserving.

If you don’t win the genetic lottery and are born into royalty, there are only two ways for you to become royalty…marriage or adoption. This is what made Lady Diana so beloved…she wasn’t royalty, but was married into it. It happened again recently when Prince Harry married Meghan Markle, an American actress. So unless you capture the heart of a royal or are chosen to be adopted by one, you are out of luck.

Isn’t it amazing that the Bible uses both of those images to describe the work of salvation God has provided for you! In Christ you are both referred to as the Bride of Christ, and that God has adopted you into his family. God has only one natural-born child and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. All others are adopted.

And all of it is a work of his mercy. You are an outsider. You are unclean by your sin. You are separated from him. You have not earned anything from him. You deserve nothing good from him. All you deserve from God is death and Hell. And anything you get from him other than death and Hell are by his mercy. You, on your own, hold no claim on Jesus. He doesn’t owe you. So what do we do? Do we sulk and resign ourselves to that separation from him? That certainly isn't what this woman did in Matthew 15. No, we come before him in worship, acknowledging who he is as the Son of God, the Lord over all things. And we cry out for his mercy.

Ephesians 2:1-5 - And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—